Cary Middlecoff

Cary Middlecoff
— Golfer —
Personal information
Full name	Emmett Cary Middlecoff
Nickname	Doc
Born	(1921-01-06)January 6, 1921 Halls, Tennessee
Died	September 1, 1998(1998-09-01) (aged 77) Memphis, Tennessee
Nationality	United States
Spouse	Edith Buck (m. 1947)
Career
College	University of Mississippi University of Tennessee College of Dentistry
Turned professional	1947
Retired	1961
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour
Professional wins	41
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	40 (10th all time)
Other	1
Best results in major championships (Wins: 3)
Masters Tournament	Won: 1955
U.S. Open	Won: 1949, 1956
The Open Championship	14th: 1957
PGA Championship	2nd: 1955
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame	1986 (member page)
Vardon Trophy	1956

Emmett Cary Middlecoff (January 6, 1921 – September 1, 1998) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour from 1947 to 1961. His 40 Tour wins place him tenth all-time, and he won three major championships. Middlecoff graduated as a dentist, but gave up his practice at age 26 to become a full-time Tour golfer.

Early life and education

Middlecoff was born in Halls, Tennessee. He graduated from Christian Brothers High School. He played collegiate golf at the University of Mississippi, becoming that school's first golf All-American in 1939. First as an undergraduate, and then as a dental student at the University of Tennessee, Middlecoff won the Tennessee State Amateur Championship for four straight years (1940–1943). After obtaining his DDS degree in 1944, he entered the United States Army Dental Corps during World War II. He won a PGA Tour tournament as an amateur in 1945, and then turned professional in 1947.

PGA Tour career

During his playing career, Middlecoff won 40 PGA Tour tournaments,^[1] including the 1955 Masters and U.S. Open titles in 1949 and 1956. He won the Vardon Trophy for lowest scoring average in 1956.

Middlecoff played on three Ryder Cup teams: 1953, 1955, and 1959 – the U.S. teams won all three times. He was ineligible for the 1957 Ryder Cup because he failed to play in the PGA Championship that year.^[2] Middlecoff was disappointed to lose a playoff in the 1957 U.S. Open to Dick Mayer, and played very few events following that event. The U.S. lost the Cup in 1957, for the first time since 1933.

Middlecoff's three best seasons were 1949, 1951 and 1956, as he won six tour titles in each of those years. He won at least one tour tournament in 13 of his 15 seasons, missing only in 1957 and 1960.

During the decade of the 1950s, Middlecoff won 28 tour titles, more than any other player during that span. A tall player with plenty of power and very good accuracy, Middlecoff during his best years was also a superb putter. He was known for often taking excessive time to play his shots.

Back problems and struggles with his nerves during competition ended his career in the early 1960s, when he was only in his early 40s, although he continued to play occasionally, competing in the Masters until 1971, as a past champion.

Middlecoff became a top player despite having one leg slightly shorter than the other.^[3]

Movies, television and writing

Middlecoff later developed a reputation as one of the best of the early golf television commentators. After retiring from the tour, he spent 18 years as a golf analyst for television.^[4] He appeared in two motion pictures as himself (Follow the Sun (1951, about the life and career of Ben Hogan) and The Bellboy (1960)). He wrote a newspaper column, "The Golf Doctor." He also appeared in a short biographical sports documentary Golf Doctor (1947).

Later life

In 1986, Middlecoff was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. He died of heart disease in 1998 in Memphis, Tennessee. He was survived by his wife of 51 years, Edith.^[4]

Professional wins

PGA Tour wins (40)

1945 (1) North and South Open (as an amateur)
1947 (1) Charlotte Open
1948 (2) Hawaiian Open, Miami International Four-Ball (with Jim Ferrier)
1949 (6) Rio Grande Valley Open, Jacksonville Open, U.S. Open, Motor City Open (co-winner with Lloyd Mangrum), Reading Open, Miami International Four-Ball (with Jim Ferrier)
1950 (3) Houston Open, Jacksonville Open, St. Louis Open
1951 (6) Lakewood Park Open, Colonial National Invitation, All American Open, Eastern Open, St. Louis Open, Kansas City Open
1952 (4) El Paso Open, Motor City Open, St. Paul Open, Kansas City Open
1953 (3) Houston Open, Palm Beach Round Robin, Carling Open
1954 (1) Motor City Open
1955 (6) Bing Crosby Pro-Am Invitational, St. Petersburg Open, Masters Tournament, Western Open, Miller High Life Open, Cavalcade Of Golf
1956 (3) Bing Crosby National Pro-Am Golf Championship, Phoenix Open, U.S. Open
1958 (1) Miller Open Invitational
1959 (1) St. Petersburg Open Invitational
1961 (1) Memphis Open Invitational

(missing one win)^[1]^[5]

Major championships are shown in bold.

Other wins

this list is probably incomplete

1949 Greenbrier Pro-Am

Major championships

Wins (3)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runner(s)-up
1949	U.S. Open	1 shot lead	+2 (75-67-69-75=286)	1 stroke	Clayton Heafner, Sam Snead
1955	Masters Tournament	4 shot lead	−9 (72-65-72-70=279)	7 strokes	Ben Hogan
1956	U.S. Open	1 shot lead	+1 (71-70-70-70=281)	1 stroke	Julius Boros, Ben Hogan

Results timeline

Tournament	1946	1947	1948	1949
Masters Tournament	T12 LA	T29	2	T23
U.S. Open	DNP	CUT	T21	1
The Open Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP

Tournament	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959
Masters Tournament	T7	T12	11	T27	T9	1	3	CUT	T6	2
U.S. Open	T10	T24	T24	WD	T11	T21	1	2	T27	T19
The Open Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	14	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	QF	R32	SF	2	DNP	DNP	T20	T8

Tournament	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969
Masters Tournament	CUT	CUT	T29	CUT	CUT	CUT	WD	CUT	CUT	WD
U.S. Open	T43	CUT	CUT	CUT	DNP	DNP	WD	DNP	DNP	DNP
The Open Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	T29	T11	T15	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP

Tournament	1970	1971
Masters Tournament	CUT	WD
U.S. Open	DNP	DNP
The Open Championship	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP

LA = Low amateur
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

Summary

Tournament	Wins	2nd	3rd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	1	2	1	4	7	11	26	14
U.S. Open	2	1	0	3	4	10	18	12
The Open Championship	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1
PGA Championship	0	1	1	3	4	8	9	9
Totals	3	4	2	10	15	30	54	36

Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1948 Masters – 1953 Masters)
Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (twice)

U.S. national team appearances

Professional

Ryder Cup: 1953 (winners), 1955 (winners), 1959 (winners)
Canada Cup: 1959

References

1 2 "All-Time Records - Top 50 All-Time PGA Tour Winners". PGA TOUR 2007 Guide. PGA Tour. 2006. pp. 6–12.
↑ "U.S. Ryder Cup side named". The Bulletin. July 30, 1957. p. 10. Retrieved June 14, 2013.
↑ Sommers, Robert (1996). The U.S. Open: Golf's Ultimate Challenge (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195100495.
1 2 Litsky, Frank (September 3, 1998). "Cary Middlecoff, 77, Dentist Who Became Top Pro Golfer". The New York Times.
↑ Barkow, Al (November 1989). The History of the PGA TOUR. Copyright PGA Tour. Doubleday. p. 265. ISBN 0-385-26145-4.

External links

World Golf Hall of Fame profile
Cary Middlecoff at Find a Grave
Cary Middlecoff at the Internet Movie Database

Cary Middlecoff in the Major Championships

Masters Tournament champions

1934 Horton Smith 1935 Gene Sarazen† 1936 Horton Smith 1937 Byron Nelson 1938 Henry Picard 1939 Ralph Guldahl 1940 Jimmy Demaret 1941‡ Craig Wood 1942 Byron Nelson† 1943-45 Cancelled due to World War II 1946 Herman Keiser 1947 Jimmy Demaret 1948 Claude Harmon 1949 Sam Snead 1950 Jimmy Demaret 1951 Ben Hogan 1952 Sam Snead 1953 Ben Hogan 1954 Sam Snead† 1955 Cary Middlecoff 1956 Jack Burke, Jr. 1957 Doug Ford 1958 Arnold Palmer 1959 Art Wall, Jr. 1960‡ Arnold Palmer 1961 Gary Player 1962 Arnold Palmer† 1963 Jack Nicklaus 1964 Arnold Palmer 1965 Jack Nicklaus 1966 Jack Nicklaus† 1967 Gay Brewer 1968 Bob Goalby 1969 George Archer 1970 Billy Casper† 1971 Charles Coody 1972‡ Jack Nicklaus 1973 Tommy Aaron 1974 Gary Player 1975 Jack Nicklaus 1976‡ Raymond Floyd 1977 Tom Watson 1978 Gary Player 1979 Fuzzy Zoeller† 1980 Seve Ballesteros 1981 Tom Watson 1982 Craig Stadler† 1983 Seve Ballesteros 1984 Ben Crenshaw 1985 Bernhard Langer 1986 Jack Nicklaus 1987 Larry Mize† 1988 Sandy Lyle 1989 Nick Faldo† 1990 Nick Faldo† 1991 Ian Woosnam 1992 Fred Couples 1993 Bernhard Langer 1994 José María Olazábal 1995 Ben Crenshaw 1996 Nick Faldo 1997 Tiger Woods 1998 Mark O'Meara 1999 José María Olazábal 2000 Vijay Singh 2001 Tiger Woods 2002 Tiger Woods 2003 Mike Weir† 2004 Phil Mickelson 2005 Tiger Woods† 2006 Phil Mickelson 2007 Zach Johnson 2008 Trevor Immelman 2009 Ángel Cabrera† 2010 Phil Mickelson 2011 Charl Schwartzel 2012 Bubba Watson† 2013 Adam Scott† 2014 Bubba Watson 2015‡ Jordan Spieth

† indicates the event was won in a playoff; ‡ indicates the event was won wire-to-wire

U.S. Open champions

1895 Horace Rawlins 1896 James Foulis 1897 Joe Lloyd 1898 Fred Herd 1899 Willie Smith 1900 Harry Vardon 1901 Willie Anderson† 1902 Laurie Auchterlonie 1903 Willie Anderson† 1904 Willie Anderson 1905 Willie Anderson 1906 Alex Smith 1907 Alec Ross 1908 Fred McLeod† 1909 George Sargent 1910 Alex Smith† 1911 John McDermott† 1912 John McDermott 1913 Francis Ouimet#† 1914‡ Walter Hagen 1915 Jerome Travers# 1916 Chick Evans# 1917–18 Cancelled due to World War I 1919 Walter Hagen† 1920 Ted Ray 1921‡ Jim Barnes 1922 Gene Sarazen 1923 Bobby Jones#† 1924 Cyril Walker 1925 Willie Macfarlane† 1926 Bobby Jones# 1927 Tommy Armour† 1928 Johnny Farrell† 1929 Bobby Jones#† 1930 Bobby Jones# 1931 Billy Burke† 1932 Gene Sarazen 1933 Johnny Goodman# 1934 Olin Dutra 1935 Sam Parks, Jr. 1936 Tony Manero 1937 Ralph Guldahl 1938 Ralph Guldahl 1939 Byron Nelson† 1940 Lawson Little† 1941 Craig Wood 1942–45 Cancelled due to World War II 1946 Lloyd Mangrum† 1947 Lew Worsham† 1948 Ben Hogan 1949 Cary Middlecoff 1950 Ben Hogan† 1951 Ben Hogan 1952 Julius Boros 1953‡ Ben Hogan 1954 Ed Furgol 1955 Jack Fleck† 1956 Cary Middlecoff 1957 Dick Mayer† 1958 Tommy Bolt 1959 Billy Casper 1960 Arnold Palmer 1961 Gene Littler 1962 Jack Nicklaus† 1963 Julius Boros† 1964 Ken Venturi 1965 Gary Player† 1966 Billy Casper† 1967 Jack Nicklaus 1968 Lee Trevino 1969 Orville Moody 1970‡ Tony Jacklin 1971 Lee Trevino† 1972 Jack Nicklaus 1973 Johnny Miller 1974 Hale Irwin 1975 Lou Graham† 1976 Jerry Pate 1977 Hubert Green 1978 Andy North 1979 Hale Irwin 1980 Jack Nicklaus 1981 David Graham 1982 Tom Watson 1983 Larry Nelson 1984 Fuzzy Zoeller† 1985 Andy North 1986 Raymond Floyd 1987 Scott Simpson 1988 Curtis Strange† 1989 Curtis Strange 1990 Hale Irwin† 1991 Payne Stewart† 1992 Tom Kite 1993 Lee Janzen 1994 Ernie Els† 1995 Corey Pavin 1996 Steve Jones 1997 Ernie Els 1998 Lee Janzen 1999 Payne Stewart 2000‡ Tiger Woods 2001 Retief Goosen† 2002‡ Tiger Woods 2003 Jim Furyk 2004 Retief Goosen 2005 Michael Campbell 2006 Geoff Ogilvy 2007 Ángel Cabrera 2008 Tiger Woods† 2009 Lucas Glover 2010 Graeme McDowell 2011‡ Rory McIlroy 2012 Webb Simpson 2013 Justin Rose 2014‡ Martin Kaymer 2015 Jordan Spieth

† indicates the event was won in a playoff; ‡ indicates the event was won wire-to-wire; # indicates the event was won by an amateur

Cary Middlecoff in the Ryder Cup

United States Ryder Cup team – 1953

Jack Burke, Jr. Walter Burkemo Dave Douglas Fred Haas Ted Kroll Cary Middlecoff Ed Oliver Sam Snead Jim Turnesa Lloyd Mangrum (playing captain)

Won: 6.5 – 5.5

United States Ryder Cup team – 1955

Jerry Barber Tommy Bolt Jack Burke, Jr. Doug Ford Marty Furgol Chandler Harper Ted Kroll Cary Middlecoff Sam Snead Chick Harbert (playing captain)

Won: 8 – 4

United States Ryder Cup team – 1959

Julius Boros Jack Burke, Jr. Dow Finsterwald Doug Ford Jay Hebert Cary Middlecoff Bob Rosburg Mike Souchak Art Wall, Jr. Sam Snead (playing captain)

Won: 8.5 – 3.5

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